Trees and phone line

There is a tree which has recently grown to the extent that it is starting to touch the BT dropwire running to my house. At the moment it's just a thin branch with a few leaves that's touching it so it's not anything major.

It got me thinking though - how resistant are phone wires to effects of trees? I see many phone lines passing through trees so they must be resistant to some extent. I assume problems only occur if thick branches grow and cause the line to stretch and/or damage the insulation?

My line is relatively new compared to some (16 years old) so I'm hoping its insulation is sufficient to withstand the leaves that are touching it!

Edited by deleted (Sun 20-Apr-14 23:26:17)

Our neighbours tree once was touching the overhead cable going to our house. Dunno how long it took, but the swaying back and forth in the wind eventually frayed and snapped the cable

Edited by bobble_bob (Sun 20-Apr-14 23:48:14)

One of mine went through a tree for 20 years ... never a problem. If a branch start to look as though it will strain the wire then get up there and either move the wire or cut the branch.

The outside of BT dropwire is very strong
It is quite unlike normal house wiring electrical/phone

I live in a very rural tree rich area.
BT overhead dropwires are threaded though trees on multiple pole without any problems at all.
I'm sure that eventually over perhaps a decade if a strong branch was continuously rubbing then it would damage the cable.
Leaves and twigs are totally insignificant.

The main problem and cause of failures is rather that squirrels gain access to the wire via the trees and then chew on the cable

I try to keep my phone line clear of tree branches because of this problem, and I don't want a bill from BT. Some of the line beyond my house is overhead near trees and it frequently gets damaged.

I've had the drop wire replaced twice at the same property after it was damaged by rubbing on tree branches. BT were very good and didn't charge me but my advice is to trim the tree now - I have mine so it won't happen again.

Now days we are told to charge if end user trees damge overhead cable.

In reply to a post by btbert:

Now days we are told to charge if end user trees damge overhead cable.

I agree with this charge. However, at a previous address I watched a BT man thread my neighbours new line through a tree ( not my neighbours ) without any attempt to trim the branches!

The fun really starts if BT are going to play by the book where a dropline runs from a pole across another's person's land prior to the householders. And it's trees on that other land that are the problem.

My line passes through some trees along an unadopted lane where ownership of the land can't be found. Pic: Tree on the line.
I've just updated this page as OR have removed their previous contact details for damaged equipment etc.! There's a Health and Safety phone contact now along with a reminder to contact your provider...

Over the years I've reported 3 trees and it takes around 3 months for each tree to be removed. BT say they have to carry out searches each time to try and find out who owns the land to bill them. Each time they fail to find the owner and eventually remove the tree.

When a tree has fallen on a power cable. The power people sent a surveyor within 2 hours and the tree was logged up in 3! That's what I call customer service!

In reply to a post by b4dger:

Over the years I've reported 3 trees and it takes around 3 months for each tree to be removed. BT say they have to carry out searches each time to try and find out who owns the land to bill them. Each time they fail to find the owner and eventually remove the tree.

When a tree has fallen on a power cable. The power people sent a surveyor within 2 hours and the tree was logged up in 3! That's what I call customer service!

Unfortunately that is the way the law forces BT to work. If the phone cable or pole is not creating a hazard or danger then they MUST attempt to find the land owner - irrespective as to whether they will be billed. A power company can just do it because there is a potential danger and then invoice the land owner if appropriate.

Just recently walking to t pub with a friend and we noticed a tree resting on the BT cables but not the power lines on a series of shared poles. Called BT who then called SSEB as there was potential for an electrical hazard. It was dealt with within hours.

In reply to a post by MHC:

Called BT who then called SSEB...

Sounds about right

Thanks for the informative replies - I've been reassured.

The tree has bendy thin branches which are too high to cut, plus it's not my tree. When it's windy they sway and touch my line near to where it joins the pole, causing the line to get pushed a bit (but not strain).

This means the line wobbles, but it's 25m long so it has a bit of slack which is presumably sensitive to the tree touching it, perhaps more so than a short line that's more taut. The line also gets a bit pushed after it rains and the thin branches rest slightly on the line.

I gather the main problem is if the insulation gets worn, rather than the line being moved. Thankfully the branches are so thin I think any such damage is unlikely, plus the branches wouldn't take the weight of rodents!

Edited by deleted (Sun 25-May-14 16:34:45)

They may be thin now, but as they grow and thicken they will push the line up and up ... just keep an eye on them.

If the tree is not on your property its not your problem its one for OR to sort out.To be fair a lot of the time its squirrels that do the damage.

It's an ornamental type tree that's overgrown so thankfully I don't think it'll ever have thick branches (certainly not near the top anyway) and I think it's pretty much reached its maximum size. It's currently sopping wet and is drooping enough at the moment that its foliage is a couple of feet clear of my phone line!

Edited by deleted (Tue 27-May-14 18:42:51)

My Mum has fir type trees in the garden next door. They (there's two either side of the gate) have grown so big that her phone wire from the pole diagonally across the road, is buried well inside the foliage. Trouble is the house is owned by the council (the only one that is in the road as far as anyone knows). They won't do anything and the tenants certainly won't. Many years ago, before it was bought by the council, the old guy who lived there used to keep them trimmed nicely so it was never an issue.

In reply to a post by rob54:

My Mum has fir type trees in the garden next door. They (there's two either side of the gate) have grown so big that her phone wire from the pole diagonally across the road, is buried well inside the foliage. Trouble is the house is owned by the council (the only one that is in the road as far as anyone knows). They won't do anything and the tenants certainly won't. Many years ago, before it was bought by the council, the old guy who lived there used to keep them trimmed nicely so it was never an issue.

Do you know if the tree's caused any issues with her phone line?

Amazingly, no, though it thrashes about in the wind and bends under the weight of snow. This doesn't actually show where it goes through, as the wire is somewhere above the upper right corner of the picture. Gives you an idea of the size and type of it though. It has, I think, been slightly hacked back on the pavement side years ago.

Forgot link http://1drv.ms/1k3bw8I

Edited by rob54 (Wed 28-May-14 18:06:08)

I suppose lines are designed to thrash about in the wind to an extent. Is it a long line from the pole? If it is then it'll probably have quite a bit of slack which means it can get thrashed about without being pulled tight.

I think the main issue is whether the insulation of the wire will eventually get worn away which could allow water in and cause intermittent issues. The actual movement of the line is less of an issue (unless it causes one of the wires inside to break, in which case the line will presumably go totally dead and need replacing).

I think I'm right in saying that - someone please correct me if not!